Hyderabad: A freak explosion in a soft drink bottle caused panic among the security staff minutes before former Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao was about to leave his guest house, in Anantpur district of Andhra Pradesh on March 4.

However, no one injured, police said on March 5.

Rao, staying in Shanti Bhavan, was scheduled to pay a visit to Satya Sai Baba for darshan. But, 15 minutes before his scheduled departure, there was a minor blast in a plastic bottle in a lawn near his guest house, at Puttaparthi in the district, police said.

The security personnel, including local police, Special Protection Group (SPG) men and bomb squad experts rushed to the spot but no explosive substance was found.

Preliminary investigations have revealed that a half-filled cold drink bottle left in the lawn exploded due to excessive heat, police said.

PTI